Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 screenings halted in Canada amid distributor dispute

Cinema Express

Cinema Express · Image source

Source published Oct 21, 2026 · Toronto

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Rajinikanth's latest Tamil release, Jailer 2, will no longer screen at York Cinemas in Canada effective Wednesday, October 21, 2026, the film's Canadian distributor announced. In a press note cited by Cinema Express, York Cinemas said screenings are halted 'due to circumstances beyond the control of York Cinemas.'

According to the distributor, valid Key Delivery Messages (KDMs) — the encrypted keys theatres need to project digital films — were not provided by the North American distributors, Shloka Entertainments and Prathyangira Cinemas, following required authorisation from the production company, Sun Pictures. York Cinemas says it fulfilled all of its own financial commitments and payments, but that technical snags between the parties caused the halt. It is still unclear when screenings will resume in Canada.

The halt comes six days after the film's October 15 release. Despite the interruption, Jailer 2 is on a record run: it has earned nearly Rs 540 crore worldwide in under a week, already beating the box-office record of the 2023 original, according to Cinema Express.

Background: Jailer 2, directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, brings Rajinikanth back as 'Tiger' Muthuvel Pandian alongside Ramya Krishnan, Yogi Babu, Mirnaa, Shivarajkumar, Mohanlal and Jackie Shroff, with new cast members including Vidya Balan, Hrithik Roshan, Vijay Sethupathi and Mithun Chakraborty. It is backed by producer Kalanithi Maran under the Sun Pictures banner and reunites the core technical team of the original: music director Anirudh, cinematographer Vijay Kartik Kannan and editor R Nirmal. The original Jailer (2023) was a major commercial success, and its sequel's packed houses across the world have made it one of the biggest Tamil releases of the year.